Strip Club owners' latest venture dubbed 'Saint Dinette'

Strip Club owner Tim Niver stands in front of the restaurant in St. Paul. (Pioneer Press file photo: Ginger Pinson)

The new Lowertown restaurant by the guys behind the Strip Club has a name, and as promised, it's a cute one: Saint Dinette.

"If you go to Webster's Dictionary, dinette is defined as a little alcove next to a kitchen for dining," Strip Club owner Tim Niver said. "That's literally what we are. It's compact, but it's cool."

The 1,800-square-foot, 60-seat restaurant will reside on the ground floor of the Lofts at Farmers Market space on Fifth Street in Lowertown.

Niver and partners Brad Tetzloff and Strip Club chef J.D. Fratzke said they are planning an intimate, European-style restaurant with a party atmosphere.

The Strip Club, the team's current eatery on the East Side of St. Paul, has about 60 seats as well.

Plans, which have already been drawn up, include 14 seats in the bar, which backs up to the kitchen.

"It's all right there in your face," Niver said. "If you're at the bar, you can order and the bartender can just turn around and grab your plates and deliver them. It'll be interactive and busy back there."

The team has hired Jes Werkmeister, most recently of Birdhouse in Uptown, to head the kitchen, and Laurel Elm, who was working for Tim McKee at La Belle Vie when they hired her, to be the general manager.

Niver said the team is hoping to sign the lease and begin construction next week. They're shooting for an April opening.